VidCon, the world’s largest annual convention for online video creators, influencers and digital media executives, is leaving the Anaheim Convention Center, the second big event to announce plans to leave the city in a week.
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The backers of VidCon, London-based Informa, said on Sept. 16 that it is consolidating conferences in the digital space after making two key acquisitions in recent years.
“VidCon has been a fantastic show. We loved hosting it,” said Anaheim spokesman Mike Lyster. “Ultimately, this is a business decision by a company that runs VidCon as well as many other shows.”
Informa is the largest booker of shows at the Anaheim Convention Center, said Lyster, who pointed out that there is no indication any of their other events are leaving.
Those Informa shows include the Natural Products Expo West held in March, Informa Markets Engineering West held in February for the medical technology, packaging and plastics industries, Space Tech Expo USA held in late June for the space technology and manufacturing industries, and Premiere Anaheim Show, a beauty trade show held in February.
“This isn’t about a show leaving the convention center, per se, because Informa is our largest operator of shows,” Lyster said. “We are entertaining the possibility in years to come of seeing VidCon come back, maybe as part of a combined show with some others that Informa does.”
The move out of Anaheim follows a restructuring of Informa’s digital conferences.
VidCon was founded by YouTubers John and Hank Green in 2010, and bought by Viacom, a division of Paramount in 2018. Informa acquired VidCon two years ago for an undisclosed price.
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Separately, also in 2024, Informa acquired a competing digital video event business, Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, for $1.5 billion from British-based Ascential PLC.
Cannes Lions is debuting a digital creator conference in October 2026 in Denver before moving the event to Nashville in 2027, bringing togetherseveral Informa events — including VidCon. The new combined conference will be called “Vidcon x LIONS Creators,” a spokeswoman for LIONS said.
VidCon came to Anaheim in 2012 — its third annual gathering — attracting 50,000 attendees annually in recent years — including digital creators from YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Twitch streamers and podcasters. Its last event took place June 25-27.
“Informa is one of our largest and most valued clients, with a portfolio of events in Anaheim that extends well beyond VidCon. Individual shows evolve, but our overall business continues to grow,” said Mike Waterman, president and CEO of Visit Anaheim, the city’s tourism bureau. “Looking ahead to 2027, we already have nearly 500,000 convention room nights on the books, and Anaheim continues to welcome roughly one million convention attendees each year.”
Last week, the Orange County Auto Show said it was moving its annual fall show from Anaheim to a different venue next spring, exiting its longtime home after 30 years.
The auto show’s backers said they are negotiating with other venues, one of which is the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa One, according to a fairgrounds spokeswoman.
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